


Straight To The Mark

by Dextrousleftie



Category: Gakuen Heaven
Genre: Accident, Anal Sex, Archery, Cat, Fluff, Gay Romance, Injury, Love, Lust, M/M, Oral Sex, Teacher/Student
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-08
Updated: 2017-02-22
Packaged: 2018-09-15 19:29:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 16,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9252530
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dextrousleftie/pseuds/Dextrousleftie
Summary: Shinomiya accidentally injures Umino. Was it merely an accident, or the workings of Fate? only time will tell...





	1. Chapter 1

Shinomiya Koji, President of the Archery Club and Dorm Leader at BL Academy, walked quietly along the sidewalk toward the dorms. He was still dressed in his archery costume, having just come from an hour’s practice on the range. He had a tournament coming up in a few weeks, so he was practicing even harder than normal. He was going back to his room to change into his school uniform, since he had a class in half-an-hour. And Shinomiya was never late for class. 

It was beautiful bright day, and new green was beginning to sprout everywhere. And as though to illustrate the old Western adage about men’s fancy, Shinomiya caught sight of a pair of lovers sitting on a bench together. It was the King, and Shinomiya's friend Iwai Takuto. Niwa’s arm was slung over Iwai’s shoulders, and the artist’s smoke-grey head rested against his lover’s strong shoulder. Shinomiya’s lips moved in a ghost of a smile. He was happy for Iwai, for while he’d known that the artist had a deep crush on him, he’d never returned the sentiment. He liked Iwai, and they were friends, but Iwai’s sometimes melancholy nature hadn’t appealed to him. He’d been too kind to crush the artist’s hopes completely when he was still mooning after him, but he was pleased that Iwai had fallen for someone who would care for him as he deserved to be cared for. 

“Ohayo, Shinomiya-san,” Iwai greeted him softly when he caught sight of the archer. Koji nodded to both men, as the King grinned at him and gave him a salute with two fingers.

“Ohayo, Takuto-san, and Niwa-san,” he said in return.

“Where are you off to?” the King enquired lazily.

“I have to go change for class. So if you’ll both excuse me…” Shinomiya said politely.

Niwa chuckled. “Of course. We both know how important it is for you to be on time, Shinomiya-san,” he teased lightly.

Iwai smiled gently at him, as he elbowed his lover in the ribs. Niwa grunted, but didn’t look offended or put out. If anything, he tightened his arm across Iwai’s shoulders, and his grey eyes gleamed with a wicked light that said that his lover would pay in a most pleasant way possible for jabbing him. “We understand, Shinomiya-san,” Iwai said softly. “We’ll see you later.”

Shinomiya bowed slightly to both of them, and continued on his way. His sharp ears picked up the sound of a soft yelp behind him, and then a more muffled sound that most likely meant that the artist was being thoroughly kissed. He smiled a little to himself as he moved on toward the dorms.

But in one of those strange twists that some days just like to throw at one, he almost immediately came across a second pair of lovers. The tall figure of Nakajima Hideaki was standing under a tree, talking with the lovely Saionji Kaoru, unofficial Queen of BL Academy. One of Nakajima’s hands rested lightly on the Queen’s elbow, and Saionji’s emerald eyes were smiling, as he looked up onto Nakajima’s face. While their spooning wasn’t as overt as Niwa and Iwai’s, it was still obvious that the pair were lovers. And Shinomiya could remember his startlement when he’d heard THAT bit of gossip around the Academy. He never in a million years would have thought that the man who loathed the Queen’s best friend would become Saionji’s lover. Life could be very strange, sometimes, he mused to himself as he walked past the pair without greeting them. They were obviously fairly into each other, and since neither of them seemed to notice him he didn’t disturb their tete-a-tete.

Seeing two pairs of lovers made him think a bit about his own non-existent love life, but he quickly pushed that aside. And he might not have thought about it again, except what should he see but a third pair! Or in this case, a threesome. Naruse was sharing a bench with the Terrible Twosome, one arm around each of the twins. The twins were gazing adoringly up at their Captain, and Naruse was obviously enjoying their fawning. Shinomiya shook his head slightly as he went past. The truly odd thing about those three was the fact that Naruse was still with the twins. Once he’d made a conquest and seduced his latest ‘honey,’ he always moved on faster than you could spit. But for some reason, he seemed to have found what he was looking for in the twins. He showed no sign of dumping them to go and find someone new. Of course, that could just be because he was too tired out from satisfying both of them to go and look for anyone else…

Shinomiya laughed quietly at his own thoughts. Strange that he’d seen three happy couples (well, two happy couples and a happy threesome) together in a space of less than half-a-mile. He wondered if the Gods were trying to tell him something. Just as he thought this, he caught sight of a FOURTH couple! Endo Kazuki and Ito Keita emerged from the door of the dorm building arm-in-arm, both smiling. They saw Shinomiya at the same time that he spotted them, and Ito tilted his head as he smiled that genuinely sweet smile that had earned him so many friends around the Academy. “Ohayo, Shinomiya-senpai,” he said cheerfully. Endo echoed his greeting, a friendly look in his dark-blue eyes. 

Shinomiya greeted both young men in return, reciprocating Ito’s smile with a kind one of his own. He’d always genuinely liked Ito Keita, although Endo sometimes drove him crazy with his carefree rule-breaking. Ito glanced at his watch and gave a squeal. “Kazuki! I’ll be late for class!” he yelped urgently to his lover. 

“Well, come on, then,” Endo grabbed his elbow and waved at Shinomiya. “See you later, Shinomiya-san,” he said as he dragged a flustered Ito away with him. 

“Good–bye, Shinomiya-san!” the redhead called over his shoulder. The Archery Club President stood on the steps of the dorm building and stared after the two of them for a moment, with a slight frown on his face. 

At last he stirred and went inside. As he walked to his room, his thoughts were of Fate. He believed in Fate to a certain extent, and he didn’t really believe in co-incidences. So was there a reason that he’d seen those four happy couples, one right after the other, this morning? Was the Universe, or the Gods, trying to tell him something important? Were they, in fact, telling him that he should go out and get a lover of his own? He considered this question, as he entered his dorm room and began to remove his hakima. 

While he was alone, he wasn’t, in point of fact, lonely. He’d often thought that having a lover would interfere with his concentration, and also the quiet time that he needed to feel centered. Lovers could be extremely high maintenance. They often demanded things of you that you weren’t willing to give. He had never found celibacy to be so much of a hardship that it made him want to take a lover. And he still wasn’t sure how he felt about the whole concept now, so he merely shrugged off the encounters, and got dressed in his uniform. He’d think about the whole thing later. For now he had to get to class.

 

He walked swiftly across campus toward the classrooms, replying to the many greetings from other students politely. Being dorm leader, he was well known around the Academy by just about all of the other students. His thoughts were already on the upcoming class and the tournament, so he wasn’t watching where he was going as well as he might have. He hurried down the hall toward his classroom, and didn’t see the small figure walking ahead of him, carrying a pile of paperwork taller than he was. He crashed right into the back of this figure, sending him flying and scattering the pile of paperwork all over the floor.

“Gomenasai!” Shinomiya cried remorsefully as he bent over the small form of Umino Satoshi, the Biology teacher here at the Academy. The teacher was on all fours, trying to pull himself together, after being hit forcefully from behind and falling onto the floor rather hard. His glasses had fallen from his face, and skittered away out of reach. He groped after them, muttering “Oh, dear,” in his soft voice.

“Are you all right, Umino-sensei?” Shinomiya asked anxiously. He saw Umino’s cat, Tonosama, sitting not far away, eyeing him with an odd look on its furry face. 

“Hai, I’m fine,” Umino replied. "Except I can’t find my glasses.”

Shinomiya reached out a long arm to snag the glasses off the floor, grateful that they weren’t broken. He handed them to Umino. “Here they are, Umino-sensei,” he said.

“Arigatou!” Umino replied happily. He thrust the glasses onto his nose, and turned his head to look back at Shinomiya out of his big, grass-green eyes. “Oh, hello, Shinomiya-san.” He said cheerfully. “I seem to have taken a spill. I guess I’m just clumsy.”

Shinomiya shook his head gravely. “You’re not clumsy, Umino-sensei, I am. I ran into you. That’s why you fell down. I’m very sorry.”

“Oh,” Umino adjusted his glasses on his pert little nose as he considered this. “Okay. That explains it. I was trying to be really careful where I walked, because I was carrying all of these papers…” he paused, eyeing the drift lying on the floor rather sadly. “I guess I’ll have to pick them all up again,” he said woefully.

Shinomiya made a negative motion with his hand. “I’ll do it, Umino-sensei. It’s my fault that you fell down in the first place,” he moved around, and began to pick up the scattered papers off the floor.

“Arigatou, Shinomiya-san,” Umino said gratefully, beaming at him behind his lenses. “You’re very kind.”

Shinomiya shook his head again. How Umino could consider him kind for picking up papers that he’d made fall in the first place when he ran into the man was beyond him. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Umino begin to push himself upright so that he could get to his feet. But the teacher cried out suddenly, his small hands flying to his knee, as he fell backward on his ass and began to rock back and forth, with his face twisted in a grimace of pain. “What is it, Umino-sensei?” Shinomiya asked in alarm, pausing in picking up the scattered papers, as he stared at the little teacher anxiously.

“I…” Umino closed his eyes, bowing his head over his knee, so that his caramel-colored tresses fell into his face. “I seem to have hurt my knee,” he said tightly, through gritted teeth.

Shinomiya felt a fresh flash of guilt go through him. “You should go see the doctor,” he said. Umino nodded uncertainly.

“Could you help me up?” He said softly to Shinomiya.

“Of course,” the archer scrambled top his feet and went to bend over the small form huddled on the floor. He put out his hand, and Umino thrust his slender fingers into his palm so that he could pull him to his feet. Tonosama made a weird squealing noise in the back of his throat, and Shinomiya caught at Umino as the teacher cried out again and started to fall. His knee had buckled out from under him completely when he tried to put any weight on it. 

“Oh!” he cried in pain, leaning against Shinomiya’s solid form and panting. “I…I don’t think I can walk on it.”

Shinomiya considered what to do. There was no way that Umino was going to be able to walk to the doctor’s office, and he didn’t just want to leave him here to suffer while he went to see about a stretcher for him. “Umino-sensei,” he said to the rather dazed man, “I’m going to carry you to the doctor’s office, all right?”

“What?” the teacher blinked up at him in puzzlement. “You don’t have to, Shinomiya-san. I’ll just wait here while you go and get him if you would…”

“No,” Shinomiya gently swung Umino’s small form up into his arms. “It’ll be easier this way. You don’t weigh that much,” he added reassuringly as he began to walk back down the hallway.

“But what about my papers?” Umino asked anxiously, looking over his shoulder at the still scattered pile.

“No problem,” the archer caught the eye of a passing student. “You,” he said in his most commanding tones to the boy. “Umino-sensei’s been hurt, so I’m taking him to the doctor’s office. That pile of papers,” he jerked his head back down the hallway, “Are his. Please collect them and bring them to the doctor’s office.” While he said please, his tone of voice made it a command. 

“Hai, Shinomiya-senpai!” the other student cried, scurrying off to pick up the papers as he’d been told. 

The archer resumed walking. Umino called to his cat, “Come on, Tonosama!” The big fluffy brown-and-white beast strolled after them in a leisurely fashion, which seemed to be enough for Umino. He subsided against Shinomiya’s chest, apparently not embarrassed about being carried around like this. But he seemed to remember something after a moment. "Don’t you have class, Shinomiya-san?” he asked, peering up at the archer out of his big eyes.

Shinomiya nodded. “That’s not important,” he said as he shouldered through the door and started across campus towards the doctor’s office. 

“Are you sure?” Umino asked doubtfully. He knew how serious and dedicated the archer was. 

“Of course. I am responsible for you being hurt. I can skip class for once to make sure that you get medical attention.”

Umino suddenly giggled. The archer lifted an eyebrow at this merry sound coming from someone who had to be in some pain. “What’s so funny?” he asked.

Umino shook his head, his eyes scrunching a bit. “You are, Shinomiya-san. You sounded just like my Grandfather there for a second. So serious and grave.” He tilted his head a bit as he considered the archer’s face. “Are you sure that you’re not an elder in disguise?” he asked rather impishly.

Shinomiya gave him a baffled look. Umino giggled again, at the non-comprehension on the archer’s handsome face. “Never mind,” he gasped, shaking his head in amusement. 

Shinomiya didn’t know quite what to make of the little Biology teacher. How the man could laugh while he was in pain boggled his mind. He arrived finally at the open door of the clinic, rapping on the frame with his knuckles politely, as he carried Umino over to one of the beds and set him down on it. 

“Doctor Ibana?” he called as he straightened up.

“Coming,” a deep voice answered. An older man with a kindly face emerged from the other room, a questioning look on his pleasant face. He’d replaced the other doctor at the Academy mid-way through the year with no explanation, but there hadn’t been too many complaints, because he was a good doctor and a very nice man. “What is it?" He asked, looking from Shinomiya’s face to Umino’s.

“I’m afraid that I accidentally ran into Umino-sensei and knocked him down,” the archer explained to the doctor as he came toward them. “He hurt his knee when he fell.”

“Oh,” the doctor came around the bed and asked Umino, “Which knee?” the teacher pointed to his left knee, and the doctor carefully reached out to touch it. Umino yelped a little, even under that feather light touch.

“Hmm,” the doctor said. “I think you might have sprained your knee, Umino-sensei. I’m afraid that I’ll have to cut the leg of trousers off of you, because I can feel some swelling in the knee. I’ll wrap it for you, and get you some crutches to use.”

He went to fetch a pair of scissors, to cut away the fabric of the teacher’s trousers above the knee. Umino looked up at Shinomiya. “You should go to class, Shinomiya-san,” he said. “I’ll be all right.”

The archer shook his head. He wanted to stay to make sure that the teacher was all right. He felt terrible about having injured him so carelessly. He watched as Doctor Ibana cut away the trouser leg and gently removed it. Umino’s knee was both swollen, and already turning dark from bruising. The doctor clucked his tongue as he carefully prodded it. “Yes, it’s definitely sprained. I’ll wrap it for you, and I’ll give you some pain killers to take.” He went off to fetch the bandages and the prescription for the little teacher. 

Umino’s face went a little pale as he looked at his own knee. “G-Gomen,” he stuttered at the concerned expression on Shinomiya’s face. “I’m just not very good with this kind of thing…” he began. The archer rushed forward to catch him as he passed out.

Doctor Ibana returned, looking surprised to see Shinomiya holding the teacher’s sprawled form. “What happened?" He asked.

“He passed out after he saw his knee.” The archer explained.

“Ahh. Well, I’ll wrap it anyway, and we’ll leave him to rest here for a while,” he quickly and competently wound a bandage around the sprained knee. Then he and Shinomiya lay the teacher’s small form back on the bed. 

The archer heard a rusty mewping sound. He looked down to see that Tonosama had somehow found his way into the building, and was sitting beside the bed, making demanding sounds with his eyes fixed on Shinomiya. Clearly he wanted to be lifted up onto the bed, since he was too fat to jump up by himself. 

“Can his cat be on the bed with him?” the archer asked the doctor uncertainly.

Doctor Ibana grinned. “Why not? It’ll do him good, I’m sure.”

Shinomiya bent over and lifted the furry form. The cat instantly began to purr like an engine, and to the archer’s amazement and disgust the cat licked his chin. He hurriedly set Tonosama on the bed next to his master, and the cat curled up in a leisurely fashion and promptly went to sleep. 

Shinomiya hesitated, looking down at the pale, pixyish face of the small man on the bed. The doctor shot him a sideways look. “You can stay here with him if you like,” he said rather slyly. “I have a chair you can sit on.” He indicated a chair sitting against the wall. 

The archer thought that he should go to class. But he still felt bad about having caused Umino’s injury. "All right,” he said hesitantly. 

Just then there was a knock at the door, and the two men turned to find the student waiting in the hallway with Umino’s pile of papers in his hands. Shinomiya went to take them from him. “Arigatou,” he told the student dismissively. 

The student practically saluted before he raced off. Shinomiya carefully went and sat on the chair next to the bed Umino was laying on, setting the stack on his lap. “Call me when he wakes up,” the doctor remarked cheerfully, taking himself off into the other room again at the archer’s silent nod.

Shinomiya frowned down at the stack of papers in his hands. This had been a strange day so far. He glanced sideways at Umino’s profile, and his frown deepened. Why did he have the uneasy feeling that this incident with the teacher was somehow related to the workings of Fate as well? He didn’t know the answer to that question, but he was afraid that he wouldn’t like the answer when he received it, anyway.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shinomiya helps Umino, then is shocked when Umino kisses him! What should he do? Especially about the fact that he liked it?

An indeterminate amount of time passed. Finally, the little teacher moved on the bed and moaned softly. Shinomiya got to his feet and went over to it as the large grass green eyes fluttered open and stared up at him rather dazedly. “What?” he said hoarsely, obviously trying to remember where he was and what had happened.

“You’re in the clinic, Umino-sensei” Shinomiya told him gently. "You fell and hurt your knee, remember? And I carried you here. You passed out after you saw your knee.”

“Oh.” his brows furrowed a little as memory returned. “Yes. I’m afraid that I almost always pass out when I see blood or something like that.” He looked up at the archer again. “Shouldn’t you be in class, Shinomiya-san?” he asked.

Shinomiya felt a faint blush rise in his cheeks. He was a bit embarrassed about having kept a vigil at the teacher’s bedside as though he were a concerned spouse. He cleared his throat hurriedly. “Ahh, yes. But I sent a message to my teacher, asking to be excused for today. Now I’ll go get the Doctor. He asked me to tell him when you woke up,” he went swiftly away into the other room, feeling those large, grass-green eyes fastened on his back. He could almost sense the puzzlement in them. 

The truth was, he still didn’t know why he’d remained beside Umino while he was unconscious. Guilt, partially, of course. He had injured the man with his carelessness. But he had the uneasy feeling that there was something more to it, even though he wasn’t sure what. 

He found Doctor Ibana leaning over a high-power microscope. The older man looked up when Shinomiya appeared in the doorway. “Awake, is he?” He asked as he straightened up. 

“Hai,” Shinomiya watched as the Doctor slid off of his stool and stood up. 

“Good. I’ll just give him this prescription and these crutches,” he pointed to a pair of crutches leaning against his workbench. “I had trouble finding ones small enough. I had to have these delivered from the hospital in town. From the Children’s Ward,” he added with a twinkle in his eye. “Then I’ll send him home to rest. No classes or experiments for him today.” He picked up the crutches and the small yellow bottle of pain medication, and went into the clinic as Shinomiya stepped aside from the doorway.

Umino was sitting up as the Doctor emerged from the other room. He smiled wanly at him. “How are you feeling, Umino-sensei?” Doctor Ibana asked as he approached the bed.

“I’m all right,” Umino replied, although there was a pinch to his mouth and around his eyes that said that he was in pain.

The doctor tssked. “Hmm. Here,” he opened the bottle of medication and handed two of the pills to the small teacher. “Take these. They’ll make you a bit groggy, but they’ll help,” he went to pour a glass of water from the carafe on the table next to the bed.

Umino obediently swallowed the pills without demure, proving that he was in pain. Tonosama watched him from his position on the bed, and Umino put out a slender hand to stroke his head after he’d taken the pills. The cat purred loudly at the touch of his owner’s (slave’s) hand, contentedly nudging his head against Umino’s hand. “Once the pills kick in, you can go home,” Doctor Ibana said to Umino. “I have a pair of crutches here for you – have you ever had to use crutches before?”

The small man shook his head. “No,” he said. “But I’m sure that I can figure them out,” he added cheerfully. 

The Doctor shook his head. “I’m not sure that I should let you wander around campus high on pain medication, trying to use unfamiliar equipment,” he said doubtfully. “I think you’ll have to stay here for a little while longer.”

“Okay,” Umino looked rather upset about something, but he didn’t say what. He simply looked down at where his hand was still stroking Tonosama, not letting the other two men see his large eyes. 

But Shinomiya had seen the expression in them, and he said to the doctor, “If I help Umino-sensei home, would that be all right?”

The doctor’s lips quirked as Umino’s head flew up. He stared at the archer out of wondering eyes, and Shinomiya felt a weird sensation somewhere in his chest at the hopeful, shining look in those large orbs. “That would be fine,” the doctor said consideringly.

The small teacher beamed happily. “Arigatou, Shinomiya-san!” he chirped.

Between them, the two men helped Umino to his feet. He tried out the crutches, which fit pretty well. He swung around the room a bit to try them out, handling them fairly well. Tonosama watched his antics with a look of amazed disdain on his furry face. “That’s good,” Doctor Ibana remarked, seeing that he didn’t seem to have any major problems with them. He handed the pain medication to Shinomiya, since Umino’s hands were full with the crutches. “Come back in tomorrow and I’ll re-wrap the knee for you,” he directed the little teacher, who nodded. 

“Arigatou, Doctor Ibana,” he said. 

The Doctor nodded. “Go home now and rest,” he told Umino sternly. “And don’t stand on that knee anymore than you have to. I’ll see you tomorrow.” 

Umino looked over at Shinomiya. “Could you help Tonosama down?” he asked, for it was obvious that the fat beast was going to have trouble getting down from the high bed by himself. 

The archer sighed as he went over to pick up the cat once again. And as before, the cat began to purr loudly the moment he picked it up, and tried to lick his face. But he jerked his head back in time to save himself from the slick, sand paper tongue, and frowned awfully at the beast as he set it on the floor hurriedly. 

Umino giggled. Shinomiya turned to look at him. The small teacher grinned at him. “Tonosama really likes you!” he exclaimed. 

The archer didn’t point out that he didn’t particularly like the cat in return. He said nothing, merely walking over to position himself beside the small man. He wanted to be close in case Umino tripped or fell for any reason. The little teacher waved one-handedly to the Doctor and swung out the door, calling to his cat “Let’s go home, Tonosama! I’ll give you some tuna!”

At the mention of fish, the cat suddenly became extremely energetic. He flowed out the door and trotted beside the two men, meowing in annoyance at their necessarily slow pace. Shinomiya was practically standing still, since his much longer legs meant that he took one step for every three or so of Umino’s swinging steps on the crutches. They went out of the building together and started across the campus towards the teacher housing, which was a building with a set of very nice apartments in it. Most of the teachers lived there, rather than make the commute to the island every day from town. Especially the unmarried ones with no children like Umino. 

Rather breathlessly, Umino said to Shinomiya “Arigatou, Shinomiya-san. It’s really nice of you to help me. I really don’t like hospitals,” he said with a grimace.

Shinomiya shook his head. “It’s no problem, Umino-sensei.” He said quietly.

Umino smiled sweetly at him. But then he halted suddenly, putting up one hand to touch his forehead. “What’s the matter, Umino-sensei?” Shinomiya asked in alarm.

“Ohh. I feel kind of dizzy,” the Biology teacher said, wilting over his crutches. He swayed, and the archer put out a hand to hold him up. “Gomen, Shi-Shinomiya-san,” he stuttered.

Well, Doctor Ibana had said that the pain medication might cause dizziness. Shinomiya realized that the swaying teacher wouldn’t be able to make it the rest of the way to the teachers housing on his own. His grass green eyes looked rather glazed. He sighed and bent over at the waist a little to scoop up Umino into his arms, crutches and all. The little teacher gasped at this move, and blinked rather blearily up at Shinomiya’s grave face. “I’m getting a feeling of déjà vu,” he slurred in amusement as the archer began to walk again toward their destination. 

Umino rested his small head against Shinomiya’s chest. “You’re so comfortable,” he said to the archer lazily. Shinomiya lifted an eyebrow, although his lips twitched at one corner. One slender hand patted the hard wall of his chest. “I like this,” he remarked happily. He turned his head a bit and nosed into Shinomiya’s shirt front, startling the archer. “And you smell good, too,” he continued.

Shinomiya felt an inexplicable rush of feeling that tightened his body in a pleasant but somewhat disturbing way. He felt Umino’s soft hot breath through the shirt of his school uniform. “Nice,” mumbled the teacher, his nose rubbing against the shirt in a way that made Shinomiya gasp a little.

The archer speeded up his steps. He wanted to get the teacher to his apartment as quickly as humanly possible. Umino had no idea what he was doing, and the pain killers were obviously affecting his mind. He reached the building, and somehow opened the door. He carried the teacher inside, but then he hesitated in the hallway. “Umino-sensei,” he said to the small man, who appeared to be falling asleep in his arms. 

“Hmmm?” mumbled Umino without opening his large eyes. 

“I need to know which apartment is yours. And I presume you have a key to the door?” 

The little teacher raised his head, opening rather blurred eyes to peer up at Shinomiya. “Oh,” he said. “I-It’s number twelve,” he pointed a rather wavering slender finger down the hallway to the right. “An’ here’s the key,” he slurred, pulling a key on a chain from around his neck very slowly.

Shinomiya began to walk down the hallway in the direction that Umino had indicated. He cursed softly at the cat, which had begun to wind himself around his ankles as he approached the apartment. Clearly Tonosama was expecting tuna soon, and he probably figured that if his slave Umino couldn’t provide it, then this other interesting person could probably be talked into giving it to him, instead.

They reached number twelve. Umino fumbled the chain off of his neck and leaned forward a bit as Shinomiya bent a little to help him. Somehow the spaced out little teacher managed to get the key into the lock and turn it. Then he turned the doorknob and weakly pushed the door a bit. Shinomiya took over from there, shouldering the door open so that he could carry the teacher inside.

The living room was an eclectic place. The archer got a glimpse of a large purple bean bag chair, a small couch done in purple plush, and what looked like – yes it was – a Swedish ergonomic chair also done in purple. This seemed to be the living room set, such as it was. He carried the small man over to set him down on the couch, the only comfortable-looking seat in the living room. As he did so, Umino blinked up at him blearily. “You’re so handsome, Shinomiya-san,” he said suddenly.

The archer stared down at him, startled. The large green eyes had a peculiar light in them. “Umino-sensei?” he said uncertainly.

To his amazement, a slender but surprisingly strong hand closed over his tie and pulled. He had no choice but to lean even further forward rather than choke to death. He called the teacher’s name again, but he didn’t respond. Not by talking, anyway. Instead, Umino pulled him down far enough that he could put his mouth over the shocked archer’s and kiss him. It was a soft kiss, but it had a strange effect on Shinomiya. Instead of jerking his head away as he knew he should have, he found himself involuntarily lifting his hand to cup the back of a small head and deepening the kiss. In the back of his mind, he wondered what the hell he was doing. Taking advantage of a medicated man? And a teacher, at that? But he couldn’t seem to help himself. Umino’s lips were sweet and soft, and his mouth opened easily under the archer’s coaxing. 

Umino’s slim arms rose to close over his neck. He moaned softly into the kiss, a candy floss sound that made Shinomiya groan a bit as his body reacted strongly. His other hand began to slide down the front of the lab coat that Umino was wearing, and who knew where this might have gone if Shinomiya hadn’t felt a warm, furry body bump up against his legs and a loud squalling sound hadn’t echoed in his ears, breaking him out of the strange spell he seemed to have fallen under. He jerked back from Umino’s mouth, making the little teacher give a disappointed sound. He looked down to see Tonosama staring up at him in disgust, and as he looked the cat squalled unhappily again. He wanted tuna, and it annoyed him that his human and this other human were too busy to feed him the promised fish. 

Shinomiya put a hand up to cover his mouth. What had just happened? Why had he not pulled back right away when Umino kissed him? He stared down at the small teacher, who was giving him a rather bewildered look. “What’s the matter, Shinomiya-san?” he asked, his brows furrowing. 

: Oh, I don’t know: the archer thought in horror. : It could be that I might be a bit upset because I was just making out with my teacher: but all he said aloud was, “You should rest, Umino-sensei.”

“Okay,” the small man sounded rather petulant. “But I liked kissing you much better,” he complained, making the archer shudder faintly. His eyelids began to drift shut. “Could you feed Tonosama?” he asked in a sleepy tone of voice. "I promised him some tuna.”

“Of course,” Shinomiya felt relief as the teacher’s head fell back against the back of the couch as he slipped into sleep. He went into the small kitchen to look for the tuna and a can opener. Tonosama went with him eagerly, mewling in satisfaction when he opened the right cupboard and discovered the cans of tuna on a shelf. He happily twined around the archer’s legs again, and Shinomiya grimaced as he thought of the cat hair that must now be covering his normally spotless uniform trousers. He opened some drawers until he found a can opener, trying to ignore Tonosama’s demanding mewps. 

He set the open can down on the tile floor, and the fat cat dug into it immediately. He left the beast to his feast of fish and went back into the living room. There he paused, looking down at the small slumped figure. That pose didn’t look very comfortable. And should he leave Umino here by himself? He was injured, after all. If he woke up in a pain medication induced haze and tried to go to the bathroom or something, he could hurt himself again. With an internal sigh, the archer went to gingerly sit down next to the sleeping man. He set the crutches aside, then loosened Umino’s tie and tried to move him to a more comfortable position. After a moment’s thought, he lifted the teacher and worked the lab coat off of him. That done, he retreated to the other end of the small couch. He put a hand to his head and rubbed at it. This day just kept getting odder and odder. 

He couldn’t believe that he’d kissed his teacher. True, Umino had kissed him first, but that could be explained and understood. The man was in a drug haze, he didn’t know what he was doing. But the archer did. And yet he’d returned the kiss enthusiastically. He glanced sideways at the small face of the man sleeping sprawled out on the couch where Shinomiya had laid him down. Dark caramel lashes lay against porcelain cheeks, and in sleep he looked more like a little boy than ever. But he wasn’t. He was at least several years older than Shinomiya himself. So at least he didn’t have to feel vaguely disturbed about having kissed what appeared to be a young boy. But otherwise – how was he to act around the little teacher now? If Umino remembered the kiss when he woke up, he’d most likely be embarrassed and uncomfortable around Shinomiya. The archer groaned deep in his throat. Whatever had possessed him to kiss Umino, he could only curse the urge. And all he could hope was that Umino did NOT remember the kiss when he woke up.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Shinomiya and Umino have a conversation about that kiss.

It was early evening by the time Umino woke up. Shinomiya had quietly turned on the t.v., since he was sure that the little teacher wouldn’t mind, and was watching the evening news. He looked over when Umino made a sound and stirred. His large eyes opened, still a little glassy from the pain killers and the long sleep. He blinked his eyes to clear them, taking in the sight of Shinomiya sitting at the end of his couch, and Tonosama curled up on his stomach purring. “Sh-Shinomiya-san” he croaked hoarsely. “What are you doing in my apartment?”

The archer fought back yet another faint blush as he replied. “I helped you home earlier, but you got dizzy from the pain killers and I had to carry you the last way. I didn’t want to leave you here alone in case you woke up still groggy. But if you’re feeling better, I’ll go” he started to get to his feet.

“Wait” Umino said, pushing himself up onto his elbows. “You don’t have to go. Thank you very much for helping me. The least I can do in return is feed you dinner. Have you eaten?”

Shinomiya hesitated. He hadn’t, in fact, eaten anything since this morning. His stomach was fiercely protesting, and he knew that the cafeteria would be closed by now. There wasn’t much to eat in his dorm room, so if he didn’t accept the little teacher’s invitation, he’d go hungry until tomorrow morning. Seeing his hesitation, Umino picked Tonosama up in his arms as he carefully sat up. “Please stay” he said earnestly. “It’s the least I can do after all the help you’ve given me.”

Remembering the kiss from earlier, Shinomiya felt uncomfortable about being praised for his ‘help’. But he founds he had trouble resisting the hopeful look in those big green eyes, so at last he nodded. “Very well” he said aloud. 

Umino beamed. “Great!” he exclaimed, turning so that he could very carefully set his feet on the floor. He set the cat down, much to the beast’s disgruntlement. “Stay here and entertain Shinomiya-san” Umino told Tonosama, which deepened the look of disgruntlement on the furry face. The little teacher picked up the crutches and levered himself off the couch. The archer watched him rather anxiously to see that he made it all right, but he didn’t even sway as he began to swing towards the kitchen.

Left sitting on the couch with the cat, Shinomiya and the furry creature eyed each other thoughtfully. Then Tonosama got a distinctly evil gleam in his eyes, and before the archer could get up he flowed forward and climbed into his lap smugly. Shinomiya made an exasperated sound as he found himself with a lapful of cat, but when he tried to shove him off, he felt claws dig into his trousers perilously close to his groin. The message was clear – if he tried to tip the cat off his lap, he’d find himself in a great deal of pain. He was forced to sit where he was, a prisoner on the couch, while Tonosama began to purr loudly in an insolently pleased sort of way. 

 

He could hear Umino moving about in the kitchen. “I hope sandwiches and salad are okay” he called out to the archer. “I can make those quick, and the doctor said I shouldn’t stand up too long.”

“That would be fine” Shinomiya replied. The quicker the little teacher got done making food, the sooner he could come and rescue him from the clutches of this devilish beast. 

“Do you like turkey?” Umino called next.

“Yes. Thank you” 

“Great. Is Tonosama keeping you company?”

Shinomiya looked down at the brown and white ball of fur currently occupying his lap. The cat was now lightly kneading his thigh. He could feel the pinprick of its claws right through the fabric of his trousers. “Yes” he said through gritted teeth, glaring down at the outrageous beast out of dark purple eyes. The cat stuck his pink tongue out of his mouth, and Shinomiya was absolutely sure that he was, in fact, sticking his tongue out at HIM. 

“Good. Tono’s great company” Umino replied cheerfully.

Shinomiya said nothing. He was letting his imagination run wild, thinking of things he’d like to do to the wretched beast. Several of these scenarios involved power tools. He heard the clink of utensils in the kitchen, and various rustles. Then he heard the distinct sound of something being chopped. After a few minutes, Umino saved him by calling: “Tonosama! Come and get some milk!” the big cat lifted his head, and then threw himself off of Shinomiya’s lap. The archer made a pained sound as the cat’s claws sank into his thigh, but at least the beast was gone. It scurried away into the kitchen like a streak of brown and white lighting. 

With a sigh of relief, Shinomiya got up and went to see if the little teacher needed any help. His mobility was limited, after all, by the crutches and his sprained knee. He stood in the doorway of the kitchen, seeing Umino standing at the counter spreading mayonnaise on wheat bread. “Can I help?” he asked quietly.

The teacher turned his head a little to smile at Shinomiya over his shoulder. “No, that’s all right. I’m almost done. But you can carry the food over there” he pointed to the tiny dinette set in the corner of the kitchen, “When it’s finished.” He turned back to the sandwiches, humming a little to himself.

The archer stood and watched the small man. Umino was a cheerful, sprightly soul, and he seldom let anything get him down. Not even a sprained knee which had to be painful for him. “Oh” Umino said as though he’d just thought of something. “I wanted to wish you good luck in the archery tournament, Shinomiya-san”.

The archer was surprised. “How did you know that I was going to be in an archery tournament?” he asked curiously. 

He was startled to see what looked like faint blush spread over Umino’s fair cheeks.   
“Oh, well, I read about it in the school paper” he said hurriedly. “I read it all the time” he looked down at his moving hands, while Shinomiya stared at his back in bemusement. 

“Thank you” the archer said after a moment’s silence. “I believe that I will do fairly well.”

“Fairly well!” Umino exclaimed, looking over his shoulder at the tall man in the kitchen doorway once again. “I’ll be surprised if you don’t win” he said fiercely. “I’ve never seen you miss the target.”

He didn’t seem aware of the implications of what he’d just said. He was looking at Shinomiya earnestly, while the archer stared back in silence. His mind was turning over what the little teacher had just said. Slowly he said: “Do you watch me practice often?”

A horrified silence fell. Umino’s green eyes widened, and his cheeks flamed. His mouth was open a little as he struggled to think of something to say. “Uhhh…” he croaked desperately, obviously unable to think of an adequate reply.

“It’s all right if you do” the archer assured the poor, embarrassed teacher. “I’ve just never seen you. Do you come down to the range?”

Umino shook his head. “Mostly I stand on the path above the range” he explained. Then he said hurriedly. “Not that I do that very often, really…” he looked away, unable to meet the archer’s quizzical purple eyes anymore.

Shinomiya decided to take him off the hook. He felt sorry for Umino, having to admit that he watched him practice sometimes. “From now on, you can actually come down to the range” he said slowly. “If you like, I’ll even teach you how to shoot.”

“Really?” Umino looked back at him again, his green eyes alight with interest. “It looks like fun” he added.

Shinomiya was hard pressed not to smile at his eagerness. “Of course. Although you won’t be able to do anything for a few weeks…” he said, waving a hand at Umino’s wrapped knee. 

“No, I suppose not” Umino agreed. He turned back to the sandwiches, working at finishing them. “It’s been awhile since I had to feed anybody else” he remarked. “It’s kind of strange.”

 

Shinomiya heard the faint thread of loneliness in the lower tones of his voice. He supposed he understood why the little teacher adored that fat, annoying ball of fur so. He lived alone except for his cat. And Umino didn’t strike him as the kind of person who’d be totally happy being alone, like he himself was. Being alone as a lifestyle choice was one thing; but being alone because you didn’t have anyone else was another thing altogether. As far as he knew, the little teacher didn’t have a lover. But then, that wasn’t a total surprise. It would be hard for a potential lover to look past the boyish face and form(and manner, for that matter) to realize that Umino was a grown man. 

A rather attractive grown man, Shinomiya thought, watching Umino’s back. The pixyish, heart shaped face was very cute, and the large, expressive grass green eyes were quite lovely. He knew how small Umino was would be a deterrent for some people, but he was finding that he rather liked the little teacher’s size. It made it far easier for him to carry him around, for example…he realized suddenly where his thoughts were going, and pulled himself together with a sharp mental warning. Lusting after a teacher wasn’t the wisest thing to do, although it wasn’t technically against the rules of the Academy. Probably because no one had considered that it might come up, since most of the teachers were older men who were not wildly attractive. 

“I’m done” Umino piped up, breaking into his uneasy thoughts. He moved away from the counter so that Shinomiya could go over and pick up the plates holding turkey sandwiches and the two bowls of salad. He carried them over to the tiny table, setting them down. Umino had stopped to open a drawer and pull out forks, which he handed to the archer. It was a surprisingly domestic moment, as they sat down at opposite sides of the table to eat. 

Umino took dainty bites of his sandwich, occasionally feeding Tonosama bits of turkey. The cat, like all cats, was a beggar of the worst kind. He did big eyed hopefulness, along with an expression that said that he was starving, like a pro. The archer marveled at the beast’s efficiency. No wonder it was so fat. He gave it a cool look when it came over to him looking for a hand out. He took a large bite of his sandwich and deliberately chewed, knowing it was silly to taunt a cat but considering it payback for the little incident in the living room. Tonosama gave him a rather sour look before turning his back in feline disdain. He began to wash his shoulder as Umino giggled. 

Shinomiya looked into those large green eyes, which were glowing with amusement. He found himself suddenly unable to look away, and the shining humor in Umino’s eyes faded into something else. Neither man moved, both entranced by something they saw in each other’s eyes. The archer found himself beginning to breathe rather heavily, especially when the teacher’s mouth opened a little with his panting breaths. He managed to drag his eyes away from Umino’s only to fasten them on those rosy lips. He remembered the kiss once again, and heat ran through him in a wave.

He struggled against his own reaction, but it was difficult. And becoming more so, as Umino began to flush under his hot gaze. The green eyes were going rather languid, and the archer groaned in the back of his throat at this sight. He was grateful that he was sitting down, since the tablecloth hid his groin from sight. All he wanted was a repeat of that explosive kiss. Somehow, with an enormous amount of will power, he managed finally to drag his eyes completely away from Umino. He stared hard at a cupboard across the room as he fought with his desire. His hands curled into fists on the tablecloth, his fingernails cutting into his skin. The pain of his nails biting into his skin helped to center him, and he took a deep breath as the lust slowly ebbed somewhat. 

“Shinomiya-san?” Umino said tentatively into the silence. 

The archer cleared his throat. “Yeas, Umino-sensei?” he replied tonelessly.

“I…” the teacher hesitated for a moment. "I just want to apologize” he said.

Shinomiya found himself turning his head to glance back at Umino’s face, in spite of the danger represented in this action. “For what?” he enquired.

The little teacher turned rather red. He looked down at the tablecloth, one of his slender hands stroking its surface. The archer tried hard not to stare at this motion. “I…for kissing you” Umino said gravely.

A shocked silence fell. Shinomiya had thought that the teacher hadn’t remembered the kiss, since he hadn’t alluded to it before. And he hadn’t acted embarrassed or nervous around Shinomiya, either. “T-that’s all right, Umino-sensei” he replied. “You didn’t know what you were doing.”

Umino seemed to become suddenly EXTREMELY interested in his own fingernails. “Yes, I did” he said very softly.

Shinomiya blinked as his mind tried to take in what the teacher had just said. “I beg your pardon?”

Grass green eyes full of something like shame lifted to his. “I knew what I was doing” he repeated slowly. “I mean, I was tired and dizzy from the pills, but…that was all” he finished as his blush deepened. “I’m truly sorry, Shinomiya-san. I don’t know what came over me.”

The archer realized his mouth was hanging open, and slowly closed it. He hadn’t been taking advantage of a drugged man? Instead, Umino had actually taken advantage of HIM? It boggled his mind. “Why?” he asked. “Why did you kiss me, Umino-sensei?”

“I…” he seemed to be struggling with himself. “I’m terribly sorry. But…I mean…” he sighed, his eyelids lowering over his expressive eyes. “I wanted to know what it was like” he said after a moment’s fraught silence.

“What what was like?” Shinomiya asked in puzzlement.

The teacher looked up at him from under his lids. “Kissing” he explained quietly. 

Shinomiya stared at him in shock. “You’ve never kissed anyone before?” he said incredulously.

The little teacher shook his head. “No. I mean, how many people want to make out with someone who looks like he could be their kid brother?” he said glumly. “I look like a kid, so everyone treats me like one. And no one…no one wants a little kid except for perverts.” The sadness in his voice touched the archer deeply. A feeling of pity flowed through him. 

“Actually, that’s not true” he said aloud.

Umino blinked at him. "What do you mean?” he asked, cocking his head in a bird-like fashion.

Shinomiya refused to let himself look away. “When you kissed me, I could have pulled away. I should have, in fact, since I thought that you were in a drug haze and didn’t know what you were doing. But instead, I kissed you back. I couldn’t help myself. If your wretched cat hadn’t interrupted us, I don’t know what I might have done.”

A wild light had sprung up in the green eyes. “Really?” Umino said in the tones of a starving man seeing a loaded banquet table who suspects it might be a hallucination caused by hunger. 

The archer nodded gravely. “In fact” he continued quietly. “I’d very much like to kiss you again right now.”

Umino’s mouth opened. His eyes widened a bit, and he took a deep breath and said: “Would you?”

Shinomiya felt as though someone had hit him in the chest. The mingled hope and desire in the green gaze was a temptation that was almost too much to fight against. All of the reasons why he shouldn’t do this ran through his head, but for once good sense and logic were taking a back seat to more basic needs. Almost in a trance, he got to his feet and took the two steps that separated him from Umino. Then he knelt down next to the little teacher, since he was so much taller than him that he would have had to bend at the waist to reach his mouth when he was sitting down. Umino watched him solemnly, and there was a touch of fear in his eyes. But there was also a blaze of excitement, and that look tightened Shinomiya’s body and sent what was left of his thinking mind on vacation. He leaned forward, setting his hands on the chair back on either side of the little teacher. Slowly, carefully, he leaned even further forward and closed his mouth over Umino’s. His last coherent thought was that he was going to be late for his own curfew at the dorm, but right at this moment he just didn’t give a damn.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just for you, kuro :) The kiss felt round the world - or at least the school! Also, see my reply in the comments section, if you would.

Shinomiya was startled. While he’d kissed people before, of course, he had never experienced this blazing rush of desire with anyone else. He literally felt like he was burning up. And it was clear that Umino felt something similar, for he was making frantic little sounds into the archer’s mouth as it devoured his. His slim hands clutched at Shinomiya’s shoulders tightly. He mewled in the back of his throat when Shinomiya’s tongue glided into his open mouth and began to caress everything inside. His slim fingers rose and buried themselves in the archer’s black hair, trying to pull him closer. 

Shinomiya finally had no choice but to pull away reluctantly so that they could both breathe. He looked into Umino’s panting, flushed, glazed eyed face, and he knew that he wouldn’t be able to settle for just a kiss. While their range of activities was limited because of the teacher’s injured knee, he wanted nothing more than to see the expression on Umino’s sweet face when he came. But the kitchen, he thought dimly, was no place for these pleasant activities. So he got to his feet, and Umino squeaked a little as he was swept up into those strong arms once again and taken back into the living room.

“S-Shinomiya-san?” he asked. “W-What are you…?”

The archer looked gravely down into the small face resting on his shoulder. “Umino-sensei” he replied seriously. “I’m attracted to you. I don’t want just a kiss from you. Will you allow me to be the teacher in this situation? I’d very much like to show you what it’s like to have a lover.”

Umino stilled. His green eyes went very wide behind his lenses. “Lover?” he repeated softly, as though he couldn’t quite comprehend what he was hearing. 

Shinomiya nodded. He’d known, from the moment that he kissed Umino, that he wouldn’t be able to settle for anything less. The Gods, it appeared, HAD been trying to tell him something. And then they’d literally thrown his potential lover into his path, probably because there was no other way that he would have noticed Umino. He, like everyone else, had seen only a young boy when he looked at the little teacher. 

Umino’s big eyes began to shine with a light that did very peculiar things to both Shinomiya’s heart and stomach. “You want to be my lover” he said as though his brain couldn’t truly wrap around the concept. “Truly?”

“Truly” Shinomiya slowly sat down on the couch, settling Umino carefully on his lap. His purple eyes studied the small teacher’s face. “If that’s what you want” he added.

Umino turned his head and buried his face against Shinomiya’s strong shoulder. “If that’s what I want, he says” he remarked in a voice that held both laughter and tears in it in equal measure. “Yeah, and I’m going to say ‘no’ when that guy comes and offers me a billion yen and my own private research laboratory, too.” He shook his head, his caramel colored locks brushing the archer’s jacket. “You’re pretty dense for a smart guy, Shinomiya-san.”

The archer wondered whether he should be offended or not by this last remark. But he was still trying to work out the sarcasm from before. “So you do want to be my lover?” he said, trying to clarify.

Umino giggled helplessly. “Yes” he said, still laughing. “Of course I do. Why do you sound so concerned, Shinomiya-san? Surely no one’s ever turned you down before when you asked them that question?”

The archer lifted a hand to stroke through the soft, shaggy hair, feeling a blending of joy and relief that was indescribable. “I’ve never asked anyone that before” he said gravely.

Umino raised his head. His green eyes were wide. “You’ve NEVER….But…but” his eyes skimmed over Shinomiya’s face and body, and he looked puzzled and amazed. “You could have anyone you wanted, Shinomiya-san!”

The archer tilted his head a little as a ghost of a smile flickered over his well shaped mouth. “That would be the important phrase, ‘whomever I wanted’. I’ve never wanted anyone else enough before to take a lover.”

Umino gasped. His eyes somehow managed to get even bigger. “But…you want me…?” he said breathlessly.

“It would appear so” Shinomiya replied calmly.

To his disconcertion, tears welled up in the big green eyes. He’d never been good with upset, crying people, and he wondered frantically what he should do as Umino buried his head in his shoulder once more and sniffled. “Umino-sensei” he said worriedly. “Are you all right? I didn’t mean to upset you.”

His tone of voice made Umino lift his head once more. Tears still tricked down his cheeks, but he was also smiling. “You haven’t upset me” he re-assured Shinomiya in a quavering voice. “You’ve made me really happy. Sometimes I cry when I’m happy, that’s all” he lifted a slim hand to remove his glasses and swipe at the tears on his cheeks with his sleeve, as the archer felt another surge of relief go through him. 

“In that case…” the dorm leader said, bending his head down towards Umino’s. He tenderly kissed the little teacher once more, and Umino wound his arms around his neck unhesitatingly. This kiss was less frantic, more exploratory, and Shinomiya coaxed Umino’s tongue out to play with his. Gently he instructed his new lover in the art of kissing, while one of his hands cupped the back of the small head and the other made caressing circles on Umino’s back. 

Time flowed away. Neither man had any idea how long they’d been engaged in this pleasant occupation, and frankly neither of them cared, either. When Shinomiya finally lifted his head away from Umino’s kiss swollen lips, the little teacher rested back against his supporting arm as though all of the energy had flowed out of him. Languidly he gazed up into Shinomiya’s purple eyes, and the archer felt a bolt of pure lust run through him at the look in those large green orbs. He slid his hand down his new lover’s neck until he reached the buttons of his shirt. Then he began to undo them one handed, while Umino watched him breathlessly.

He finished the last button, pushing the plackets of the shirt open to reveal a pale, slim chest that despite its size didn’t look like a little boy’s. Umino’s body, unlike his face, was small but obviously an adult’s. This sight turned him on even more, for despite his attraction to Umino he’d still had some reservations deep in his mind about the fact that the teacher resembled a child. Umino panted desperately as Shinomiya’s hot eyes ran lingeringly over his skin, and he arched his back helplessly over the archer’s arm as a long fingered hand did the same. He whimpered as Shinomiya glided his hand across the planes of his chest, finally reaching a small, pale pink nipple. 

His fingertips pinched the nipple delicately, making the teacher cry out as his head went back at this sensation. He used his thumb to stroke over the hardening nub, relishing the soft cries he drew from Umino’s throat. His hand moved over to attend to the other nipple, as he bent his head again and began to place butterfly kisses along the teacher’s fragile jaw line. His hand drifted south down the smaller man’s stomach, feeling the muscles jump under his questing fingertips. He reached the waistband of Umino’s trousers, and dipped his long fingers under it as the teacher gasped helplessly in his arms. 

“S-Shinomiya-san!” Umino wailed as those clever, insidious fingers wormed their way down to the bulge under the briefs he was wearing, and stroked lightly across the top of it. “Onegai” the little teacher whimpered, not sure what he was asking for but frantic for it.

“Umino-sensei” the archer purred in the smaller man’s ear. “I can’t get your trousers off one handed. Take them off for me” he coaxed, in such a sultry tone of voice that poor Umino’s brain nearly short circuited. 

His slim hands fell into his lap to begin to fumble with the belt buckle, snap and zipper. He was distracted by the fact that Shinomiya kept doing things like kissing the side of his face or suckling his earlobe. Desperately he yanked at the buckle, crying out as Shinomiya’s wicked tongue ran along his jaw line. Finally, with a gasping cry of relief, he managed to get the belt undone. He wrestled a bit with the fastening and the zipper, as the archer blew hot breath into his ear. He squirmed wildly in Shinomiya’s lap, nearly sending the archer through the roof. He groaned in turn as the teacher’s slim fingers finally got his zipper pulled down. 

“Lift your hips a bit” Shinomiya told Umino. The little teacher did so obediently, gasping again as the archer’s strong hand began to push his trousers down off of his hips and thighs. His briefs went with them, leaving him sitting naked on his lover’s lap. He blushed a little in a decidedly cute way as Shinomiya’s darkened purple eyes looked him over. He made a motion as though to hide himself from Shinomiya’s gaze, but after a moment his hands fluttered down by his sides. 

Here was another place where Umino did not look like a child, the archer thought. This was not the cock of the twelve year old boy that he resembled. The old adage about small men being well hung flashed through his head. While Umino’s erection wasn’t enormous, it was still large and well formed. It lay against his thigh, twitching in excitement, already dark red and leaking precum heavily. 

He’d looked for too long. Umino made a pleading noise in the back of his throat, lifting his hips again to offer himself to his lover. Shinomiya smiled slightly as he let his hand slide over Umino’s hip towards his lap. The teacher cried out wildly as Shinomiya’s long fingers hand closed over him, and his back arched up as that hand stroked him once from root to tip. “Ahhh!” his cry was loud, and Shinomiya hoped silently that the walls of the apartment weren’t thin. Not that he really cared. All he cared about was the sight of the small man twisting on his lap, and the incredibly sexy way his skin had flushed from chest to hairline. 

His fingertips stroked the head of Umino’s cock lightly, relishing the whimpers that burst from his throat. He used his thumb to sweep over the pink tip and gather up some of the pre-cum, and Umino lunged upwards as his fingers dug into the fabric of the archer’s coat until they turned white. Then he began a steady rhythm with his hand, stroking the length of the quivering cock as Umino began to come apart. “Uhhh! Ahhh!” the little teacher’s cries became even louder, indicating that he was nearing his end. 

Deciding to muffle these loud sounds a bit, Shinomiya bent his head and kissed Umino again. He took the cries into his mouth even as he tightened his fingers a bit and gave several hard strokes that finished the teacher off. A choked wail was swallowed as Umino shuddered in his lap, his semen spurting out over Shinomiya’s caressing fingers. He went limp in the aftermath of his orgasm, and Shinomiya lifted his head to see that the large green eyes were glazed and sightless. He smiled, even as his fingers gathered the last of the semen that dribbled from the head of Umino’s cock. His little lover made a soft sound of contentment, resting his head against Shinomiya’s arm as though it were too heavy to hold up anymore. Shinomiya reached out a long arm to grab a tissue from the box on the side table, cleaning his fingers as he gazed down on Umino’s lovely little face.

The archer had enjoyed that thoroughly. It was true that his groin was throbbing, but he knew that he could take care of his problem later when he got back to the dorm. For now, he kissed Umino’s sweaty forehead. “I’ve got to go, Umino-sensei” he said softly. “I’m already past curfew as it is.”

The green eyes lost their glaze as Umino blinked up at him. “Go?” he repeated as though it were a foreign word.

Yes. I can’t stay the night in a teacher’s apartment.”

Umino frowned. “I suppose not” he said reluctantly. He started to move in Shinomiya’s lap, but suddenly he started as he became aware of something hard poking him in the ass. “Shinomiya-san” he squeaked. “You’re not…you didn’t…”

The archer shook his head. "That’s not important” he said.

Umino’s brows snapped down. “Yes, it is!” he protested, trying to wiggle out of the archer’s lap and only succeeding in making the problem worse. Shinomiya groaned deep in his throat. “Please don’t do that, Umino-sensei” he begged desperately.

The teacher stilled. “Okay” he said. “But only if you let me…” he stopped as a blush spread up his cheeks. But he was determined. “Take care of it” he continued bravely.

Shinomiya could see that there was no way that he was going to be able to talk Umino out of it. There was a set to the small, rosy mouth that said that he would not be gainsaid. “All right” he said. Umino perked up at his aquiesance. “Set me down” he said, pointing at the couch beside them. 

Shinomiya carefully did as he requested, helping him to sit with his sprained knee draped out in front of him. He started to step away, but gasped as a pair of slim hands darted out to begin to unfasten the belt buckle at his waist. He froze, letting Umino’s hands fumble with the belt and then the fastening if his trousers. Grave green eyes looked up at him as the teacher finally succeeded in undoing his trousers. He grasped the waist and began to push them down the archer’s hips and thighs, just as Shinomiya had done to him earlier. His eyes dropped from the archer’s face and fastened no the rigid cock that he’d freed from its confines. There was fascinated curiosity in his gaze, and he reached out a tentative hand to touch it.

Shinomiya gasped again as a small hand closed over his erection. Umino licked his lips a little, an unconscious gesture that made the archer moan softly. He moved his hand a bit, learning the feel of another man’s cock, and Shinomiya wondered desperately whether he was going to live through this experience. Especially when the other small hand rose to gently cup his balls. Umino was a scientist, after all, and he was an old hand at experimentation. This wasn’t quite like masturbation, and he tried several different movements of his hand before he found one that made Shinomiya groan loudly. Satisfied that he’d found the best technique, he began to stroke the cock he held in his hand as the fingers of his other hand rolled the archer’s balls in his sack. 

He adored the sounds he was forcing from his lover’s throat. Shinomiya was usually such a quiet, controlled person – it delighted Umino that he could reduce him to the same helpless bundle of nerves that he himself had been only minutes before. He watched as Shinomiya threw his head back a little, panting and gasping for breath. He speeded up the tempo of his hand, wanting nothing more than to bring his lover the same pleasure that he’d received not long ago. 

Shinomiya could hold out no longer. He came with a cry, his hips jerking as he shot his semen out all over Umino’s hand and wrist. He stood panting, his head hanging a bit, as Umino lifted his hand to study the come splattered no it. After a second, he lifted the hand to his mouth and put out his small pink tongue to lick at the stuff curiously.

Shinomiya opened his eyes to see his little lover licking at the semen on his hand. He gasped, and was thankful that he’d just come. Because it was such a sensual sight that he knew that he would have been sporting another erection within seconds if he hadn’t just orgasmed. His eyes fastened on that pink tongue as it lazily licked his come from slim fingers, and only when Umino had cleaned the last of it off did he begin to fasten himself back into his trousers. 

When he was as neat as tidy as he was going to get(since there was cat hair all over his trousers – and wouldn’t anyone who saw him at the dorm wonder about the hair all over his groin?) Shinomiya looked down at Umino. “Will you be all right getting to bed?” he asked doubtfully, thinking about the complicated maneuvers of getting out of clothing when you were balancing on crutches. “I’ll be fine” Umino replied quietly. But the archer could read the doubt in the big eyes before he seemingly became fascinated with his own hands.

Shinomiya shook his head. He reached down and scooped a surprised Umino up in his arms once more, carrying him down the hallway to his small bedroom. “You don’t have to stay and help me, Shinomiya-san” he protested as the archer set him on the bed spread.

“Of course I do” Shinomiya replied calmly. “We’re lovers. If there’s one thing that seeing my friend Iwai-san in a relationship has taught me, it’s that lovers take care of each other. So I’ll help you get ready for bed, and perhaps kiss you goodnight, as well” he said with a small smile.

Umino’s big green eyes began to glow with a deep emotion that made the archer feel almost breathless. That look made such a small task as helping him out of his clothing and into a set of pajamas definitely worth it, and he went into the bathroom to moisten a hand towel to gently clean Umino’s skin before he helped him to dress in his night clothes. Then he went and fetched the crutches from the living room so that Umino would have them on hand during the night if he had to get up for any reason. He propped them up on the night stand next to the bed. “There” he remarked when he was done. “Now you can go to bed whenever you want.”

“Arigatou, Shinomiya-san” breathed his little lover gratefully.

Shinomiya cupped the side of that small face as he gave Umino a serious look. “Would you call me Koji?” he asked quietly.

Umino gasped as his eyes widened a bit. “Koji” he repeated. “Then you have to call me Satoshi, because it’s kind of weird to have my lover calling me ‘sensei’.”

Shinomiya could see the logic in that statement. “Very well, Satoshi” he conceded.   
Umino smiled brightly. “Will I see you tomorrow?” he asked hopefully.

Shinomiya nodded. “Of course. I’ll come by tomorrow morning and help you to the clinic. And I have to practice tomorrow...there are benches at the range. Would you like to come and watch me?”

Umino nodded vigorously. He hesitated a bit. “Would you…come to dinner again, too?” he asked tentatively.

Shinomiya sighed. “Chaos is going to ensue in the dorms” he remarked to the air. When Umino gave him a puzzled look, he smiled. “When the dorm leader himself starts breaking the rules, everything’s bound to go to Hell. Oh, well, I never liked that curfew, anyway.”

Umino giggled happily, his eyes shining. This earned him a kiss, which left him flushed and mussed. “Now I really have to go” Shinomiya said reluctantly as he straightened up. 

Umino nodded. “I’ll see you tomorrow” he said in the tones of a man who can’t quite believe what he is saying is true. 

The archer finally tore himself away from his new lover, making his way out into the living room. Here he found Tonosama sitting on the couch like a fat furry Buddha, giving him an enigmatic look. Shinomiya paused and looked at the animal. He felt immensely silly talking to a cat, but he said; “Truce?” as though Tonosama were a human being who could understand him.

The cat yawned delicately as it studied him. It seemed to understand that he wasn’t going away, and that if he started an all out war with Shinomiya his slave might just decide that his lover was more important than his pet. He flowed off the couch, and before Shinomiya could move the cat twined around his ankles coolly as though sealing their pact. The archer sighed, but accepted the gesture. “For being so generous, I’ll bring you a tube of toothpaste” he said to Tonosama, remembering how the beast had defiled his toothbrush and eaten his green tea toothpaste when they were at the hot baths.

Tonosama mewled happily, and the archer decided as he left the apartment that maybe not all cats could understand human speech, but this one definitely could.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Umino confesses all to his friend Niwa

Shinomiya walked across the lobby of the dorms, heading towards the doors. It was only 7:30, but he was on his way to Umino’s apartment to take him to the clinic. He had to go this early, because he had a class at 8:30. He had almost made it when he heard a familiar voice calling his name. He stopped and turned to greet Iwai as the artist walked toward him with a strange expression on his lovely face. 

“Koji,” he said. “You’re going out awfully early this morning. Especially since you came back so late last night,” he added, which made Shinomiya stiffen in surprise. 

Seeing his expression, Iwai shook his head. “I just happened to be coming out of Niwa’s room,” he said without a blush, “when you came in last night. I’ve never seen you come in late for curfew, Koji. Where were you last night? And where are you going now?”

Shinomiya considered just telling his friend that it was none of his business, but he knew that Iwai was worried about him. His behavior had to seem very peculiar to the artist, since he was both a consistent person and one who never broke the rules if he could help it. He took his position as dorm leader very seriously. He could see the anxious look in Iwai’s light gold eyes. Most likely all kinds of awful scenarios were running through his head to explain his unprecedented actions. 

He sighed. He knew that he could trust Iwai to keep a secret, if he asked him to. “I’m on my way to Umino-sensei’s apartment.” He said gravely.

Silence. Iwai’s eyes widened. “Umino-sensei? Why, Koji? Is that where you were last night?” 

Shinomiya nodded. “I ran into him yesterday in the hallway, literally, and knocked him down. He sprained his knee, and I’ve been helping him to get around since he’s now on crutches. I’m taking him to the clinic this morning to have Dr. Ibana re-wrap his knee.”

Relief flowed through Iwai’s eyes at this simple explanation. That was so like his chivalrous friend, and definitely something that the archer would break the rules over. “Well, then, don’t let me stop you. And say hello to Umino-sensei for me. Tell him I hope his knee gets better soon.” Iwai started to leave, but Shinomiya halted him with an upraised hand.

He was thinking hard. He intended to keep breaking curfew from now on, and if Iwai was sharp eyed enough to notice once, he was bound to notice again. The excuse that he was helping Umino while his knee was injured would only float for so long. He thought that he could appeal to the artist to help him keep his secret by taking advantage of his romantic nature. “That’s not all, Takuto,” he said seriously.

“Huh?” the artist turned back to him, cocking his ash grey head to the side like a curious bird. “What do you mean, Koji?”

“Umino-sensei and I…are lovers,” Shinomiya said bluntly.

Irrelevant to the situation, the archer wondered in distant amusement if he shouldn’t go fetch a shovel to scrape Iwai’s jaw off the floor with. “W-what?!” he stuttered, his brain trying to reboot after this shocking revelation.

Shinomiya’s lips quirked as he fought not to laugh. “Umino-sensei and I are lovers,” he repeated calmly, while the befuddled artist just blinked at him. 

“B-But…you and ….UMINO-SENSEI!” yelped Iwai, causing the archer to make a motion with his hands for him to not be so loud. 

“That’s right. But I’d prefer that the whole dorm DIDN’T know about this, Takuto.”

Iwai clapped a hand over his mouth. “Sorry,” he said muffledly from behind it. “But…this is so odd. Umino-sensei…he’s….”

“Not a child,” Shinomiya finished coldly. “Despite the fact that most of the school seems to like to treat him like one.”

Iwai stared at him blankly as he lowered his hand. “Wow,” he said softly, “You really like him, don’t you?”

Shinomiya found himself blushing faintly, but also smiling a little. “Yes, I do,” he agreed simply. “Now will you be willing to help me keep this a secret, Takuto? I don’t want to get Umino-sensei in trouble over this. I’m not sure how the powers that be would respond if they found out that a teacher has taken a student as a lover.”

“Of course,” Iwai replied readily, his golden eyes beginning to shine. “I won’t say anything to anyone else, I promise.”

“Especially not to Niwa-san. No offense, Takuto, but I believe that the King is the biggest gossip on campus.”

Iwai shook his head ruefully. “None taken. I know he is. I swear I won’t tell him.” Then, much to Shinomiya’s shock, he stepped forward and enveloped him in a tight hug. “I’m so glad for you, Koji,” he breathed into the archer’s ear. “This is wonderful.”

While he was bemused by his friend’s action, Shinomiya returned the hug. “Hey!” an angry voice cried, causing them to break part. “What the hell is going on?!”

Both of them turned to look at an angry, glaring Niwa, who was advancing across the lobby towards them with a look of mixed suspicion and jealously clearly written on his handsome face. His grey eyes went back and forth between his lover’s face and the face of his lover’s old crush, and it was clear what he was thinking. Iwai looked disconcerted. “Niwa,” he began, putting out a hand pleadingly. “It’s not what you think…” 

The King crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh really?” he said. “Then what is it like, Iwai? Tell me. Oh, wait…I find you hugging the guy you used to have a crush on all the time. So it’s fine, really.”

Iwai threw Shinomiya a wild sideways look. He had just promised not to tell his lover about the reason why he’d been hugging him so enthusiastically, so there was no way that he could tell Niwa the truth. But the King was suspicious, and so if he lied to him he’d probably know and assume the worst. The archer sighed. He couldn’t let Iwai’s happy relationship be broken apart for his own selfish reasons. “Niwa-san,” he said to the fuming King. “Takuto was simply hugging me in congratulations.”

“Congratulations?” Niwa replied, furrowing his brows a little, “For what?”

Shinomiya took a deep breath. “I had just finished telling him about my new lover,” he said quietly but firmly. “He was excited about this fact - that’s why he hugged me.”

A look of surprise ran over the King’s face, making Shinomiya wonder silently just what everyone on campus the thought about him that they all seemed so shocked that he had a lover. “A lover?” Niwa asked. “Who?”

The archer knew that there was no way to avoid telling Niwa the name, since if he refused the King would simply think that he was lying to cover up he and Iwai’s real activities. He sighed heavily. “Umino-sensei,” he said grimly.

Niwa stared at him. Then he threw his head back as he guffawed. “That’s a good one, Shinomiya-san!” he said as he wiped at the tears in his eyes. “Tell me another one, come on! Surely you can do better than that!”

Shinomiya stared at him in perplexity. The King though that he was pulling his leg. He wouldn’t believe the truth. What was he to do, now? But Iwai stomped over to Niwa and poked him sharply in the ribs. “Hey!” protested his lover, “That hurt, Iwai!”

Iwai raised a threatening finger as he glared at his lover. “And you’ll get more where that came from if you don’t shut up and listen, Niwa,” he said angrily. “Koji’s telling you the truth. He and Umino-sensei ARE lovers. And I think it’s wonderful, so you can just stop laughing right now. Or I swear I’ll kick you in the shins until they’re black and blue.”

Niwa drew back and put his hands up in a defensive manner. “All right, all right!” he said, although laughter gleamed now in his grey eyes. “You’re awfully dangerous, beautiful. I think I should be scared,” Iwai glared at him, but he flowed forward with a sudden move and kissed him before the artist could react. It took only a moment before all the resistance ran out of Iwai and he moaned softly as he wound his arms around Niwa’s neck.

Shinomiya felt terribly embarrassed to witness this. When Niwa finally raised his head and looked at the archer, Shinomiya had trouble meeting his gaze. “So you and Umino-sensei, eh?” the King said lazily as his fingers stroked his lover’s ash grey hair tenderly. “Who would have thought it? So I guess congratulations ARE in order, Shinomiya-san.”

“Arigatou,” the archer replied uncertainly. “But I would ask that you not tell anyone else about this, Niwa-san. I don’t wish to get Umino-sensei in trouble.”

“Sure thing,” the King promised, which made apprehension run through Shinomiya. He didn’t sound serious about his promise at all, and most likely the news would be disseminated around the entire school by lunch time.

“Niwa!” cried Iwai, raising his head to frown up at his lover sternly. “You’re not to tell anyone. If I find out that you’ve been spreading gossip about this, I swear you’ll be sleeping alone for at least a month.”

A look of genuine horror spread across the King’s handsome face. “Okay, okay!” he said hurriedly. “I swear I won’t tell anyone! Honestly!” he made an x across his breast, looking pleadingly at Iwai while giving him his best ‘little boy’ eyes. The artist melted on the spot, unable to resist the King’s insouciant charm.

Shinomiya sighed in relief. While there weren’t too many threats that would keep Niwa in line, being cut off for a month was definitely one of them. His secret was safe again. For now. He spoke aloud: “I have to get going, Niwa-san, Takuto. I have to take Umino-sensei to the clinic.”

“Huh, why?” the King asked. 

“I’ll tell you,” Iwai said, setting his hand on his lover’s arm as he looked over his shoulder at the archer. “Well see you later, Koji.”

Shinomiya nodded and made his way out of the dorms at last. He walked across the campus, enjoying the early morning crispness of the air as he strolled along. He felt…different, this morning. He wasn’t sure exactly why, but he felt light hearted and…happy? Was this what it was like to have a lover? Is that why Iwai’s lovely eyes seemed to shine more brightly whenever he saw Niwa? And did he feel this sense of anticipation at knowing that he was going to see his lover soon? That feeling made him hurry his steps a little, to arrive that much faster at Umino’s apartment.

The hallway inside the building was empty, much to his relief. He went along to number 12 and knocked on the door. “Just a minute!” he heard Umino’s voice call through the door, and then it swung open to show the little teacher standing balanced on his crutches inside. His grass green eyes lit up when he saw Shinomiya standing in the hallway, and he smiled brightly. It made the archer’s breath come a little short to see that expression, and he found himself smiling back. “Ohayo, Koji,” Umino greeted him happily.

“Ohayo, Satoshi,” Shinomiya replied gravely. “Did you sleep well?”

Umino maneuvered away from the doorway so that he could step inside. “Pretty well. I did have to take another pill in the middle of the night, but after that I slept like a baby. And it doesn’t hurt that bad this morning.”

“Good,” Shinomiya noticed that the little teacher was still wearing his pajamas. “Shall I help you get dressed?” he asked.

“Would you?” Umino said gratefully. “Although I think I’m going to have to wear the trousers with the cut out knee again this morning, because I don’t think that any of my other pairs will fit over this” he waved a hand at his bandaged knee. He was wearing a pair of pajama shorts, since his full length ones hadn’t fit over his knee, either. 

Shinomiya followed him into the bedroom. Tonosama was curled up on the bedspread, and he eyed the archer coolly from his position. Shinomiya remembered that he’d promised to bring the cat a tube of his green tea toothpaste. He resolved to do so at the earliest opportunity, since Umino adored the fat, grumpy fur ball so it was best to keep on the animal’s good side. Umino sat carefully on the side of the bed and reached out to stroke the cat as the archer went to collect a shirt and the trousers he’d worn yesterday.

Shinomiya took a secret delight in the blush that spread over Umino’s small face as he helped him out of his pajamas. The little teacher obviously wasn’t used to having a lover, yet. He made sure that his hands slid over the lovely soft skin in unnecessary (but delightful) movements as he worked, until Umino was flushed and panting a little. He couldn’t help himself – he leaned forward and kissed his lover softly on the mouth. The kiss didn’t remain soft for long (and neither did he), as another surge of lust swamped him at the taste of Umino’s lips. He groaned as he cupped the back of the little teacher’s head and deepened the kiss, while his lover gasped and readily opened his mouth to the invading tongue that swept inside to caress everything within. 

Vaguely Shinomiya realized that he couldn’t continue this pleasant activity. He had a schedule to keep, after all. But it was so hard to drag himself away from Umino’s tempting mouth – the hardest thing that he’d ever done. Grass green eyes stared up at him dazedly. “What?” the little teacher asked in confusion, clearly wondering why he’d stopped. The archer groaned again as he stepped away from the overwhelming temptation sitting on the side of the bed. “I…have to take you to the clinic this morning,” Shinomiya said slowly, fighting for coherency. “I have a class in forty five minutes.”

Umino looked disappointed, but he nodded. “I understand, Koji,” he replied rather wistfully. The archer fought back a shudder and forced himself to walk forward and finish dressing his lover. He tried to make his movements as impersonal as possible this time, but that didn’t entirely work. They were both sweating a little by the time he finished buttoning Umino’s shirt. 

He helped Umino stand up and balance on his crutches once again. “Come on, Tonosama!” the little teacher cried to his cat. The fat brown and white form didn’t move for a moment, and then the cat sighed in disgust and uncurled himself. He jumped off the side of the bed with an air of ill use that made Shinomiya choke back a laugh. The cat was a better actor than some of the Drama Club students. 

They made their way across campus towards the clinic, the archer watching his lover to make sure that he wasn’t getting tired. But Umino seemed his usual chirpy and energetic self this morning, and he moved easily on his crutches. Tonosama trotted by his side with his plumy tail high in the air. He was hoping to get some more tuna for accompanying his slave to the clinic once again. 

Dr. Ibana greeted them both cheerfully. Between them, he and Shinomiya maneuvered the little teacher onto the bed so that the doctor could unwind the bandages and examine the knee. “It looks better already,” he remarked as he carefully touched the still swollen flesh. “You should be as good as new in a few weeks,” he rebandaged the knee as Umino asked him: “When can I get back to teaching my classes, Doctor?”

Dr. Ibana shook his head. "Not for a few more days,” he said sternly. “I want you to continue to rest and make sure you don’t put too much pressure on that knee. If it continues to improve this rapidly, I’ll clear you to go back to teaching soon.”

Umino looked disappointed, but accepted the doctor’s words. “Okay. Arigatou, Dr. Ibana,” he added as Shinomiya helped him down off the bed and onto his feet.

“You’re welcome, Umino-sensei,” the Doctor replied with a smile. “Come in again tomorrow, all right?”

Umino nodded and smiled as he and Shinomiya left the clinic. He sighed as they left the building. “I was kinda hoping that he’d let me go back to teaching again today,” he said. “I feel so much better, and I doubt that he’ll want me to spend a ton of time in my lab, either. It’s kind of boring just sitting around the house all day.” He looked glum.

Shinomiya looked down on him sympathetically. He understood, as he’d broken his arm a few years ago and had chafed under his inability to hold a bow for weeks while it mended. But he couldn’t stay and entertain his little lover, for he had to go to class. “Will you’ll meet me at the archery range in an hour and a half, Satoshi? I have to practice,” he said quietly.

The little teacher instantly brightened up. “Of course!” he said eagerly. “Tonosama and I will be there!” he said, beaming up at his tall lover. 

Shinomiya’s face softened into a small smile. “Good. I’ll see you then. I have to go to my first class, now.”

Umino waved a hand at him. “That’s all right. Tono and I can make it home by ourselves. Thank you for coming to help me this morning, Koji.”

Shinomiya’s lips quirked. “What are lovers for?” he said as he left the little teacher to make his way towards the classroom where he had his morning class. 

 

When Shinomiya arrived at the archery range later in his costume, he found Umino and Tonosama sharing a bench waiting for him. Umino’s face brightened when he appeared, making the archer repress an urge to go over and kiss him thoroughly. They were out in public, after all, and had to be a bit more careful. But he smiled at Umino as he greeted him. “I guess its okay to say this since we’re lovers” Umino said shyly, looking the tall archer up and down, “I’ve always thought that that outfit is really sexy on you.”

Shinomiya looked down at his archery costume in surprise. He felt a flash of warmth at the admiration in the big grass green eyes. He also felt a flash of something else, and had to turn away so that he wasn’t looking at Umino anymore. The small man was just too hard on his control and equilibrium. “Thank you” he said aloud in answer to Umino’s observation. He noticed that his voice was a little hoarse, and cleared his throat as he picked up his bow. He heard Umino giggle softly behind him, and found himself grinning a little, too. 

Shinomiya was surprised. He thought that having someone watch him as intently as Umino was would spoil his concentration, but oddly enough it seemed to have the opposite effect. Umino became very quiet, but the archer was still aware of his presence behind him. And for some reason, this awareness made him shoot with even more skill than normal. It was as if he were showing off for his lover, and when the practice hour was up he’d shot dozens of bulls eyes. He went to collect the last of his arrows from the target, and turned around to find Umino watching him with awe shining in his big eyes. Pride swelled in him as the little teacher began to clap. “Tono and I think that that was wonderful,” he said as the archer approached him. “I don’t see how you can lose at that tournament. No one can beat you.”

Shinomiya wasn’t used to having a cheering section. The sincere admiration in his lover’s eyes stroked his ego. “I’ll do my best," he said in return. He paused. "Will you come to the tournament?" He asked hopefully.

“Of course we will!” Umino replied staunchly. “Tono and I will come to cheer you on.”

The cat didn’t look like he thought much of this idea. He yawned elaborately and turned his head away. But Shinomiya didn’t care much what the annoying animal thought. He was just happy that Umino was going to come to the tournament. “I have to go and get ready for my next class” he said to Umino. “But I will come over for dinner tonight. Do you want me to fetch something for us from the cafeteria? I don’t want you to have to cook every night.”

Umino’s eyes took on a near incandescent glow. He found himself fascinated by that light. “That would be great” the little teacher replied happily. “I’m not the world’s best cook, really. I can do simple basic stiff, but anything else is beyond me.”

“All right. I’ll see you tonight.” Reluctantly the archer left him to go back to the dorms, thinking to himself that he’d never looked forward less to going to class.


End file.
